Mazda3 Maintenance & Repair

Comments

Yup, dealership. I paid about $120 for the speed sensor, and about $60 for the pulse generator. I think the pulse generator was the main culprit but since I was in there and had the parts I just replaced both of them, it was super easy. Just remove the battery box and you have access to the pulse generator on the top of the tranny, and i actuall went under the car on the bottom of the tranny and replaced the speed sensor. Both are held in place with one bolt/nut, use your jack stands etc and be safe . Good luck.

Hey guys...I have a 2008 Mazda 3 with about 6000 miles on it. I had the tire pressure light come on about two months ago. I filled the low tire up and it went off. Three weeks later it came on again. Same story. Three weeks later it did it again. After monitoring it for the last couple times it has done this, I've noticed that it loses about 5 psi a week in that front passenger side tire. There is no damage to the tire and no nail or anything stuck in the tire as far as I can tell. The leak just seems so slow for it to be any serious damage. Maybe it's a valve stem problem. I'm guessing the best thing is just to take it in? Is this completely uncommon?

There is no damage to the tire and no nail or anything stuck in the tire as far as I can tell. The leak just seems so slow for it to be any serious damage. Maybe it's a valve stem problem. I'm guessing the best thing is just to take it in? Is this completely uncommon?

A tire on my Wrangler lost air at an even lower rate and it was a nail. As for the valve stem, try brushing some soapy water on the stem and see if it bubbles.You can buy an inexpensive valve stem core removal tool as well as replacement cores if that is the problem.

I agree 5 psi per week is too much. I'd take it to a Discount Tire or some such place and have it check out. There very well could be a small nail that you don't see, or a valve stem problem as roadburner noted. Either way you're probably looking at less than $20. Let us know what you decide.

I am still having issues with my tire pressure. Pretty much every week i have it check and at least 1 is low. Just had it checked at Discount Tire several days ago and 2 of them were low; the lowest one was my newest tire. I told them about the issue i was having and they checked my tires and found nothing. Also there haven't been any changes in weather temps. It's kinda of annoying problem for a newer car. Keep us posted pls!

So here's the exciting conclusion. I took it to the dealer and at first they said it was a small nail and it was fixed. I drove it away but had low pressure again the very next morning. I took it back where they told me that they had been looking at the wrong tire yesterday. So they either lied about the nail to make it look like they had fixed something or there happened to be a nail in another tire. When the service consultant came back he told me that they couldn't find a puncture or anything but they re-mounted the tire and replaced the valve stem core. That is up to the minute and I'm going to find out tomorrow morning whether or not the issue is resolved. I'll keep ya posted.

Please do let us know - I have the exact same problem with similiar circumstances. I have a 2007 Mazda 3 5-door. The right front tire continues to trigger the TPMS, for me it's about every 3-4 weeks. When I check it, it is slightly low - around 27psi. I fill it back to 32psi and a few weeks later it happens again. I have sprayed the tire with soapy water (and the valve stem) and found no bubbles. It seems to be gradual (just over 1psi per week). I have hesitated to take it into a tire dealer until I determine where the TPMS sensor is mounted. (I don't want an uninformed mechanic to loose the sensor it if my tire has to be removed from the wheel). It's done this now for several months - it doesn't seem to be getting any worse (or any better).

Battery finally died Friday night when the wife was out alone...thank G-d for that roadside assistance...got to her in about 30 minutes. Replaced the battery with an Interstate one the next morning. Lucky to get that many months down here in South Florida.Almost at the 45k mark and only have 1 oil change left on the prepaid maintenance policy that we bought. Would I do it again...? NO! But the wife said she'd do it in a heartbeat with her next car. She said it made her get the car serviced on a more regular basis.Will definitely be going back to the 5k or 6k oil change interval after the policy ends.

Funny... I'm on here now researching this EXACT same problem for my brother. He has a 2008 Mazda 3 that the engine just blew up on him (he only has 9k on the car) and it was all he could to get it onto the shoulder of the road. When he got out to see what the hell had happened he found out that all the oil was gone. But get this: The MAZDA dealership has always done his oil changes and the last one was done 1200 miles ago. This must be a serious problem with the Mazda 3. We'll see what happens. He's at the dealership what Mazda is going to do to correct the problem.

He has a 2008 Mazda 3 that the engine just blew up on him (he only has 9k on the car) ... he found out that all the oil was gone. But get this: The MAZDA dealership has always done his oil changes and the last one was done 1200 miles ago.

I'm considering the purchase of an MS3. Are all of you MS3 owners, especially those who have owned the car for a longer period of time, happy with your cars? Any serious mechanical/electrical problems? Is the car a good value? Will it hold up over time? What don't you like about the car? Anything else I should know?

I'm considering the purchase of an MS3. Are all of you MS3 owners, especially those who have owned the car for a longer period of time, happy with your cars? Any serious mechanical/electrical problems? Is the car a good value? Will it hold up over time? What don't you like about the car? Anything else I should know?

I've owned my MS3 since July 2007. It's been totally reliable over the 16,000 miles I've driven it. Just one problem... It took several months, but the car has reinforced my preference for RWD cars. I'm going to take it to a couple of HPDEs to see how it performs, but I'll probably sell it this summer and find a nice E36 or E46 M3 to serve as my track rat.

I have an 04 mazda 3s sedan with 129,000 miles. The engine started making a ticking noise at around 1600rpms about a week ago. I first thought it might have to do with the cv joint, but they were fine. So I checked the oil- even though we had just had the car serviced at the dealership 3 weeks prior. No oil on the dipstick. Oil light never came on- neither did check engine light. Put just over 4 qts in. Clicking sound still there, a little more pronounced. Drove the car about 4 miles the next day, and lost every bit of the oil. Left a trail from my driveway to my parking space at work. Called the dealership; they first told me to have the car towed to them at my expense. Went to the dealership in person, told them we got underneath the car, removed the shroud, and the oil filter cap was where the oil leaked from. Service mgr gave me a replacement cap and the tool to remove/install cap. Put new cap on, filled with oil again, and no leaking. Unfortunately, old cap had metal shavings in it. Took car to dealership (60 miles from home), they checked the old cap and found a crack by the metal drain plug in the center of the cap. They put the old cap back on, started the engine, and oil poured out. Now the service mgr says they never touch that drain plug, so the crack isn't their fault. He called mazda rep, who will come to look at car in the next few days. Service mgr gave me the impression that I'm going to have to pay for a new engine- if damage is severe enough. I have all my service records on this car since I bought it from this dealership in Nov 04. Nobody else has touched this engine but them. From what I've read on this forum, this plastic filter cap is prone to breaking. What recourse do I have? I'm trying to stay calm until I hear from the dealership or the mazda rep, but it sounds like they know this is a problem. If the plastic cap fails, and the oil light never comes on, isn't that the manufacturer's fault? What is the point of an oil light if it doesn't come on to warn the driver? I know my car is out of warranty, but considering I have all the service records, a filter cap with a crack, and I've been a loyal customer- this is my 2nd car purchase from this dealership and I've spent about $3000 there on servicing- why should I have to pay for either repairing or replacing the engine? HELP!!

I've had an M3 S (manual) since June 2005. It's been a a decent car:Pros: It's fun to drive and shift, it's roomy enough for a child seat and two dogs, my fuel mileage averages 28-34, it feels like a well built and solid car, everyone always asks, "what kind of car is that",and the warranty has helped on a few occassions.Cons: I live in MN and had to buy a set of snow tires b/c w/o them it handled very poorly in the winter, I had spark plugs replaced at 200 miles, then they learned it was the fuel pump, which I had replaced at 500 miles. My latest problem was a faulty PCV? valve which was not getting enough gas to the engine (it was running too lean I was told) so the car just started idiling roughly, and dying at intersections (twice). It was a way sub zero week, and I had a 9 month old at the time, so I let the service manager have a piece of my mind on that one (it was at about 30k miles). In all cases the repairs were covered under warranty, and I was given a free loaner for the repair days. The real reliability test comes after the car leaves warranty period - shortly.

My thoughts are these kinds of problems (except the poor stock tires - and my neighbor swears Goodyear Eagles are the best tire ever made) are pretty typical with most cars, but everyone has a story. I have learned that on boards like this one, most people post when things go wrong with their cars, so the opinions are usually biased. Mazda sells 1,000's of these cars in the US, and although they never lead anything in reliability, they are never towards the bottom either. I paid $16k for mine new in 2005, and that seems like a fair price for the experience I have had so far.

I don't see this as Mazda's problem but rather the dealer's problem under his "errors and omissions" insurance policy. If you have a receipt from the dealer for an oil change from only 3 weeks ago, and lost all your oil right after that, and if the dealer will not help you, I suggest you seek legal counsel. I think going to the Mazda factory is a dead end; however, there is no harm in pursuing every course of action--you never know---and if you pursue every avenue, that would look better for your case when you present your complaint to the dealership itself.

Of course, should there be road damage under the car, or if the oil wasn't changed by the dealer, this changes your case entirely and tilts it toward the dealer's favor. I don't know the facts of course.

It's very odd, by the way, that your oil warning light didn't go on. You might also check to see if the sending unit is even connected.

I've had mine a little over a year now. For the price it is a great car. Fun to drive. The only complaint that I have is that is scratches easily - I don't think there is a rubber strip to protect against people opening their doors into you in parking lots - or if there is one, it is insufficient.

Thanks for the info. The oil was always changed by the dealership, every 5k- I never had anybody else touch the engine. The service mgr says that the special tool they use to remove the filter cap wouldn't have cracked it. But it clearly says on the cap not to overtighten it. If you overtighten, won't it crack either as you have the tool on or later when there's pressure on the cap? And why did it take 3 weeks for the car to lose all the oil? The dealership called today to tell me mazda won't pay for anything. Service mgr said he's found a salvaged engine for $4500. By the way, a year ago they broke one of the lugs doing a tire rotation and that cost me $200 even though they admitted they did it. They said it was just one of those things...

I have loved this car until now- I've even bought another just like it. Now I'm worried about the new one. I still think it's the nicest car for the price by far.

I think you need to seek legal counsel if they stonewall you. I'm not saying they are in the wrong, but the co-incidence between their oil change, your mysterious cracked oil cap, and loss of all your oil within a few weeks time is very compelling circumstantial evidence. If you can prove that the oil cap can be cracked by over tightening, the ball is then firmly in the dealer's court to rebut that.

I need to change my air filter. Is the cost of a K&N filter worth it? Is there any noticeable improvement in MPG or performance? It's about 3 times the cost of the stock air filter, and I really do not know much about air filters. The guy at Auto Zone said they were the best. Any assistance is appreciated!

I have run K&N in pretty much every vehicle I have had, the engine can breathe much better in my opinion, and if you keep your car for a while the filter will pay for itself over the cost of 2 or 3 paper filters, and you don't need to re-charge them very often. Some claim 10 HP increase, I am not sure it is quite that much in the mazda 3, but you should gain a tad, even though you may only barely notice it.